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by Rotarian Josie D. Henson – Rotary eClub One In September
of 2008 at the Seoul Presidential Conference, fifty thousand Korean
Rotarians committed to build a mother and child (maternity)
hospital, in support of reducing child mortality.
Donations came from both Korean Rotarians and the Community
Chest of Korea, which matched funds, Won per Won, totaling to a
collective donation of 1 billion won (about US$870,000). After
securing one Billion Won, then RI President D.K. Lee, in cooperation
with the Korea International Health Foundation, launched a project
to build a hospital for mother and children in Tumbi, Pwani Region
of Tanzania. This past April, D.K. Lee and several directors made a
trip to Tanzania to inaugurate this project.
The new Tumbi-Rotary Mother and Child Health Complex is scheduled be
fully functional by June 2010. It is hoped that this project, which
started off as a small commitment, will be responsible for saving 42
lives daily, making dreams real. The main
purpose of our trip was to inspect the new wing being constructed at
Tumbi Referral Hospital, at Kibaha, Pwani Region of Tanzania, East
Africa. The ground breaking of the new Mother and Child Wing was
done in 2009 during the incumbency of IPRIP D.K. Lee. On 28 January,
we departed by bus to Tumbi Hospital to get an update on the
construction progress. We Rotarians interacted with the mothers and
their babies.
On 29 January, the Rotary Group flew from Dar Es Salaam for
Kilimanjaro International Airport to visit the School of St. Jude
near Arusha. We were met at the airport with buses sent by the
school. On the bus along the way, we got a good glimpse of
snowcapped majestic Mt. Kilimanjaro in the horizon.
The School of St Jude was started in 2002 by an Australian girl
named Gemma Rice (now Gemma Sisia) who had a dream that she could
make a difference to the lives of very poor children in East Africa.
In 2002 with the help of her local Rotary club she started the
School of St Jude in Arusha Tanzania with just 3 children and a tiny
classroom. Today this school has 1,300 students with 3 campuses and
over 350 staff. Dozens of Rotary groups actually built many of the
classrooms and with ongoing financial support from Rotarians all
around the world. It is an amazing story and when we visited the
school we were in awe of this incredible institution, which is
“Making Dreams Real” for 1,300 children who have come from the
poorest of families and now have a chance for a real future through
free education.
Our Safari
Adventure began after lunch, when eleven 7-passenger Toyota Land
Cruisers met us at the School grounds. We were on van No. 10 and
with us were IPDG Sharon and Dan Wherry of Nebraska, and IPDG Juan
and Eyda Varela of Panama and together with our driver, Fred, we
were seven in all. We would ride together during the whole 6-day
Safari tour. We were quite a sight as we left St Jude’s School in
Arusha in a convoy. We drove for a few hours until we hit a dirt
road, then we suddenly saw our first giraffe, browsing on the leaves
of a small Acacia tree. We all stopped to take photos.
Our vans then drove through steep curves and deep-forested ravines
as we gradually ascended the Crater. Before we knew it, we were at
the gate of Ngorongoro Crater. We now zig-zagged accross the dense
forest through the rough dirt road. Every time we rounded a steep
corner, we would catch a tiny glimpse of the crater below. All of a
sudden, we were on a huge flat clearing and all eleven vans stopped
for a glimpse of the most spectacular biew of the crater below in
the late afternoon sun. Everyone alighted and took photos of the
breathtaking panorama.
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) is simply the most
spectacular tourist destination in Tanzania and possibly in Africa.
There are nine craters in the NCA but the biggest and most
impressive is Ngorongoro Crater which forms a haven of protected
areas, attracting a staggering number and variety of wildlife like
the big five: lion, elephant, the Cape Buffalo, the leopard and the
rhinoceros. The big five were chosen for the difficulty in hunting
them, and not their size.
The last leg of our Safari ended at the Serengeti Plains where we
saw all of the big five except for the rhinoceros. After
those six hectic but enjoyable days, we were ready for a beach
escapade. This time all
of us flew from Seronera Airstrip to alluring and historic Zanzibar
where we were billeted at the Bluebay Resort and Spa. Its entrance
foyer had whitewashed Arabesque columns with bellmen garbed in
bright crimson costumes. The main lobby had high-pitched ceilings
and exposed wooden beams with thatched roofing. There were daybeds
strewn around the comfortable chairs where we sat and relaxed. The
cool ocean breezes greeted us as we drank the complimentary cool
fresh juices while waiting for our room assignments. We were given
cool wet face towels to refresh our faces and tired arms. Accommodation
was in charming 2-story bungalows and we were on the second floor
overlooking a lush flower garden and coconut and palm trees further
down the beach. The room had a large super king-size four-poster
Zanzibari bed with a gauzy net neatly tied around each post. It was
a superb and huge room looking out through a balcony to the garden
and the ocean beyond. In addition we had a bathroom with a toilet
bowl and a bidet, shower room and large dressing room, plus a mini
bar and small television set. Food at the
lodge was amazing. We were on a half board basis so evening meal and
breakfast were included and lunch was purchased on the basis of 1, 2
or 3 courses. Every meal we had was of the best quality and we had a
choice of all kinds of meat, beef, chicken, salads and pastas. We
feasted on an array of seafood freshly caught everyday...grilled
fresh fish, calamari, crab, shrimp, etc. There was even an Italian
Chef who supervised the dinner buffet every night. There were
assorted cakes and pastries to choose from and a variety of fruits
like mangoes, pineapples, watermelons, papayas, bananas, citrus and
passion fruit arranged on top of a huge wooden boat.
Zanzibar was
once a separate state with a long trading history within the Arab
World. It united with Tanganyika to form Tanzania in 1964 and still
enjoys a high degree of autonomy within the union. The capital of
Zanzibar, located on the island of Unguja is Zanzibar City, and its
historic center, known as Stone Town is a UNESCO World Heritage
Site. It was the center of the slave trade in the 18th and 19th
centuries and slaves mostly came from East Africa, until slavery was
officially abolished by the end of the 19th century. The oldest part
of the town consists of a maze of narrow alleys to houses, shops,
bazaars, and mosques. Cars are often too wide to drive down the web
of narrow winding streets. Its Swahili architecture incorporates
elements of Arab, Persian, Indian, European and African styles. The
Arab houses are particularly notable because they have large and
ornately carved wooden doors and other unusual features such as
enclosed wooden verandas.
Zanzibar has amazing white-sand beaches, a fascinating history and
wonderful spices. Its main industries are spices, raffia, and
tourism. In particular, the islands produce cloves, nutmeg,
cinnamon, vanilla beans and pepper. It is but
fitting that as we started our African Rotary Journey at the Tumbi
Hospital in Dar Es Salaam we were about to end it in Zanzibar with
another Rotary endeavor, this time at the Migombani School.
Migombani School is located on the outskirts of Stone Town, Zanzibar
in the midst of the urban sprawl. It schools children from Migombani
as well as Mpendai as there isn’t another Primary School in the
area. There are 1,087 students in the school, in 11 classrooms.
There was only one classroom that had a few school desks on the
premises, forcing the teachers to teach in dire conditions. The rest
of the classrooms had no desks with over 45 children per classroom. Rotary Club of
Stone Town Zanzibar was on the lookout for partners to help buy
school desks for the school. The western world takes school desks
for granted. Imagine having to do all of your work on the floor
everyday, soon all motivation to continue would be lost. RC of
Zanzibar Stone Town had US$1,000 that they have raised for this
project and their District gave a maximum of US$500 per project. We attended
the meeting of the Rotary Club of Zanzibar at Bluebay Resort and
Club Treasurer Eleanor Griplas made a very moving power point
presentation. A total of 27 Rotarians in the Safari group made
pledges and actual cash donations that night. IPRIP D. K. Lee
donated cash for 10 school desks as did IPDG Juan Varela of Panama
and IPDG Dr. Uwe Kayser of Germany. IPDG Trevor of South Africa
pledged $5,000. The Philippine group donated cash for 6 desks. The
total amount raised was US16,320. The RC of Zanzibar got their
targeted amount for the total number of desks for all of the
classrooms. Their Dreams were made real in just one night. The next
morning we sadly bade “kwaheri” (goodbye) to the more than 60
Rotarians with whom we shared many happy, treasured moments together
on this unforgettable African Rotary trip.
I think Tanzania got its grip on me, and I won’t be able to shake it
loose. There is magic to this country, an alluring calmness and
simplicity, a natural magnificence that takes hold slowly, but once
done, never lets go. I won’t be surprised if I can’t wait to return
again soon for more.....
For a more detailed account and more photos CLICK HERE: |
Rotary
in Tanzania
During
this inspection trip, Rotarians, who served to make dreams real were
with IPRIP D.K. Lee, like IPRIVP Monty Audenart (who orchestrated
the whole trip) and IPRID Paul Netzel to see the progress of the
hospital wing construction. PDG Ruben Henson, spouse Rtn. Josie,
IPDG Jesus Nicdao, IPDG Boyet Limon and PP Sonie Zamora formed the
Philippine group. Other IPDGs from Australia, Japan, Korea, France,
Germany, Panama, South Africa and the United States also joined this
trip.
The
School of St Jude story is told in brief with wonderful photographs
in this link: